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CHAPTER V.

OUR GLORIOUS DELIVERER.

WHO IS THIS THAT COMETH FROM EDOM, WITH DYED GARMENTS FORM BOZRAH? THIS THAT IS GLORIOUS IN HIS APPAREL, TRAVELLING IN THE GREATNESS OF HIS STRENGTH? I THAT SPEAK IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, MIGHTY TO SAVE."-ISA. lxiii. 1.

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It was our painful duty in our previous discourses to your attention to the invasion of Eden by the common enemy of God and man, and to give an account in detail of the great moral tragedy in which all the parties to the sad catastrophe were slain. We saw the temptation of our ancestors, and witnessed their fall; we trembled at their guilt, and groaned at the thought of their tremendous doom; and it will now be our happiness to contemplate their rescue from perdition, and shout for joy at their deliverance. It is our desire to furnish such a representation of the person and character, the suffering life, and death on the cross, of our Divine Saviour as will assure you that our heavenly Father is perfectly reconciled to all his penitent and believing children. We shall seek also, at the same time, to give you such views of the resurrection, and of the ascension and exaltation of the illustrious Conqueror as relate to his splendid triumph over our spiritual enemies. And we are not without hope that your faith will be increased

while you meditate on the great battle, the brilliant victory, and everlasting triumph of our glorious Deliverer. Observe,

1. His redeeming scheme.

"Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other."-Psa. lxxxv. 10.

Such was the gracious accord of the Divine attributes when they met together to devise the great scheme of human redemption, that they not only cordially acquiesced in the plan of salvation, but they ratified the agreement by embracing each other. God was of purer eyes than to behold iniquity or to look upon sin, and man could make no reparation, could offer no satisfaction, and give nothing to God for his own ransom. Man's rescue from perdition, and restoration to Divine favour, were inexpressibly desirable; but how could these objects be accomplished? We have seen that man was utterly unable to recover himself, on the one hand, and on the other, that it was impossible for God to suffer his righteous law to be broken, and the transgressor to escape with impunity, without making his goodness and mercy the grave of his holiness and truth, unless full satisfaction were made. If our guilty ancestors must be favoured with an offer of mercy, that offer must of necessity be made in a way that would satisfy the claims of dishonoured law. The criminals could only be suffered to escape on the ground that an innocent person would suffer in their stead-" the just for the unjust, to bring them to God." Even this was an idea new to all but God himself; an innocent person to suffer instead of the guilty, was such an anomaly as an intelligent universe had never conceived; the hosts of heaven had never heard of such a thing till then. This infinite thought, this mystic plan of pacification, had its origin in the mind of Jehovah himself, and all but God were surprised and overwhelmed with it.

The scheme was replete with honour to the offended,

and safety to the offenders; but who could carry it out? Could angel or archangel execute this strange design? Could thrones or dominions accomplish this wondrous object? Could principalities or powers perform this mighty project? Where could this innocent person be found, who would suffer instead of the guilty ?-and who could pluck the brands from the fire without perishing for ever himself in the midst of the flame? Assuming that Divine goodness yearned for ruined man's redemption,-that Infinite Wisdom devised this glorious scheme, and that the mercy and love of God were interested to find a Redeemer for man, saying, "Who will go for us?" could the brightest intelligence in heaven respond to that inquiry, "Here am I, send me? Ah, no!

Assuming that millions of intelligent worlds roll in the immensity of space, and that creation was telegraphed round, saying, "Who will engage to accomplish the purpose of mercy in the Redemption of ruined man?" Then world sent intelligence to world, "None to rescue!" Then system said to system, in response, "None to help!" and the universe echoed to Him that made it, "None to redeem!" All was silence, profound silence, protracted silence. Michael was mute with amazement! Gabriel was dumb with astonishment! And the lips of creation were sealed in silence! Not a whisper breathed,—not even a harp-string moved,-not a sound was heard among all the creatures in earth or heaven, except the universal echo, "None to help!"-"None to deliver!" -" and none to save!" "I looked," among these, "and there was none to redeem !"

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Divine holiness, truth, and justice, meanwhile had guilty man in their custody, and were pledged to execute the sentence of the law. They were on their way with poor man to perdition, amid blackness and darkness, and Mercy lifted up her voice, and said, "Is there no eye to pity?" They were hurrying him down into the pit, amid storms of indignation and tempests of wrath,

and Love stretched out her hands, and cried, "Is there no heart to feel?" They had arrived at the brink of hell, amid the lightnings and thunderings of the broken law, "Thou shalt surely die!" when Goodness exclaimed, "Is there no arm to save ?"-And angel and archangel, and cherubim and seraphim, were silent still. The executioners of the law were just about to cast the guilty culprits into the eternal prison, when the voice of Divine grace broke the silence of heaven: "There was a Lamb as it had been slain in the midst of the throne, who was equal to the vast undertaking of saving others without losing himself!" And his eye saw poor man : glory to Him! And what then? His heart pitied him! blessings on his name! And what next? Ah, what indeed? 66 His own arm brought salvation!" Hozannah in the highest! Yes, there was a response from the Son of the Highest, our Glorious Deliverer, who sat in the midst of the throne-the highest and brightest throne in heaven, saying, "Lo I come to do Thy will O God!" O what music there was in that voice of free grace, as it came stealing along on the ears of a listening universe! "Never man spake like this!" No, this was the voice of the Son of God, and even He had never spoken words like these before: "Lo I come to man's rescue! Never was there a sound so spiritstirring heard before, and never was there a charm so soul-reviving felt. Heaven thrilled with new emotion, and angels struck their harps to a new song-" Worthy the Lamb!" "Here am I, send me," said heaven's fairest spirit-Glory's first-born! "I will suffer instead of guilty man; I will assume his nature; I will take upon me a body just like Adam's, and a soul like his, and I will keep the law that he has broken-will magnify it, and make it honourable, and then die in his room and stead. In the fulness of time,-the time most conducive to the glory of God and the salvation of man, -I will step from this throne, and stoop to a manger; and I will journey from the stable to the garden; from

the garden to the cross; and from the cross I will return through the regions of death to this place! By the suffering of death, and the operations of grace, I will finish transgression, make an end of sin, and bring in everlasting righteousness. Meanwhile, Adam shall be rescued immediately from his perilous position; and if he repent, and believe, he shall be saved from hell, and get to heaven after all!" The mercy of God heard this response; and after hearing the general terms of this new covenant, she clapped her wings, and flew from heaven to earth to bear the news-A SAVIOUR FOR MAN! All heaven shouted for joy-an atonement for Man! Mercy and Truth met together to exult in the provision of grace for man! Righteousness and Peace even kissed each other; yea, and even Justice proclaimed, there is glory for man! The whole Deity said, "It is enough, I am satisfied for ever: "Deliver him from going down into the pit, for I have found a RANSOM! ALLELUIA!"

2. His cheering announcement.

"I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed. It shall bruise thy head and thou shalt bruise his heel."-Gen. iii. 15.

Eternal thanks to our Great Deliverer for the immediate discomfiture and arrest of the enemy, and for the instant rescue of our Eden Ancestors and all their posterity. For thus saith the Lord, "Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children." The original declaration of war with Amalek, from generation to generation, was a proclamation of peace to our ruined ancestors. So that in pronouncing judgment on the great destroyer, the announcement of mercy was made to the Eden family. For thus it is written: "I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her